Jordan Times
Thursday, December 2, 2004
Participants in AJEX 2004 see
offices in Amman helping businesses in Iraq
By Rami Abdelrahman
AMMAN — For many international companies operating, or planning to start
operations in Iraq, opening an office in Amman is a very good idea.
The reasons for that, according to a key telecommunications company in Iraq,
include accessibility to better resources, know-how, a safe place for
brainstorming and planning away from bombs, and easy and safe means to access
the war-torn neighbour.
“It is less dangerous, and reduces high security costs of having your
headquarters in Iraq,” said Iraqi Loay Malaieka, responsible for government
solutions sales and business development for Lucent Technologies, the company in
charge of building a communications infrastructure for the Iraqi government and
armed forces.
“We build, someone else bombs and tears things apart, and then we have to build
again because we believe that Iraq is eventually going to be a safe country, no
matter how much sacrifices are made,” said Malaieka, a former Iraqi opposition
member during that past regime.
Another Iraqi businessman said opening offices in Amman to run businesses in
Iraq provides a chance to rely on selling products and services to Jordan
whenever the security situation in Iraq worsens.
Jalal Gaaod, general manager of JBMAG & Partners, said: “Jordan itself is a good
business opportunity, having been under continuous development for decades.”
“The Kingdom has the laws, infrastructure and skills needed by any company that
seeks to access the Iraqi market,”Gaaod added, stressing that “accessibility
into Iraq is easy through Jordan.” Currently, more and more companies, including
infrastructure giant Parsons, are opening offices in Amman to provide a backbone
for their operations and offices in Iraq. Amman operations manager, Ted
Sanderson, agreed with Malaieka and Gaaod on the benefits of opening offices in
Amman.
Malaieka and Gaaod, among many other people interested in the reconstruction of
Iraq, are in Amman to participate in the American-Jordanian Exhibition and Forum
AJEX 2004, which is geared towards brainstorming, establishing and reinforcing
the US-Jordan, US-Iraq and Jordan-Iraq economic and business relations.
The AJEX 2004 tackles investment opportunities in Jordan from a broader regional
perspective, and sees that economic relations with the US can be improved
through providing a secure Jordanian platform for US and international companies
operating in Iraq.
AJEX, organised by JABA the USAID-funded Jordanian-American Chamber of Commerce,
is going as far as announcing today a joint American-Arab Chamber of Commerce to
be a higher board responsible for harmonsing individual countries' chambers of
commerce with the US for the benefit of the whole region.
Other main topics of the forum include reviewing and brainstorming the
always-improving trade relations between US and Jordan through agreements, and
the future vision of US President George W. Bush's Middle East Free Trade Area
initiative.